Holding Your Own
by LilyGhost
Summary: Stephanie walks into a little trouble on a job, but manages to keep her cool despite what challenges the skip or Ranger threw at her. A Ranger POV story.


**All familiar characters are Janet's. The mistakes are solely mine.**

"Step away from the lady or be prepared to kiss half of your head goodbye," I warned the asshole.

"He's not kidding," Steph informed the man who was stupid enough to put his hands on her and a gun _to her. _"Ranger can _and will_ part your hair using your skull for help."

"Do I look like I need help here, Babe?"

"Nope. We both can tell that you're ready to shoot. And I gotta say, that's freaking me out a little … considering how close I'm standing to him."

"Are you saying you don't trust my aim? I hear that it's the stuff of legends."

"I trust you and all your abilities, but you know this 'RangeBabe' t-shirt I'm wearing is the one Mary Lou had made for me for my birthday. I doubt even Ella would be able to get brain matter and skull fragments out of it. And I really don't want to have to throw it out."

"Your life is worth more than a shirt," I needlessly pointed out, since I'd already picked up on what she was attempting with all her babbling.

The fucker is more stupid than dangerous. This can end without bloodshed if I rein in my need to destroy anything or anyone endangering what I value above all else.

"But it's a _sentimental _shirt," she told me. "Maybe you can just shoot him in the knee or something ... the one furthest from me of course."

"_Of course_," I repeated.

"What the fuck is wrong with you people? I'm holding a gun here," Bucky Warling reminded us, waving a prehistoric six-shooter high up in the air. "And I'm not afraid to use it."

"That's helpful to know," Steph said. "So now you're about to see that I'm not afraid to use what _I _have."

My Babe seized the moment and elbowed him in the sternum. She then took him from breathless to unconscious with a two-fisted hit to the back of the skull I'd threatened to split in two only moments before.

"You can tell Santos you have proof that '_You hit like a girl_' is a compliment. You scored a knock-out on your first try," I proudly stated.

"I may need you to give Lester your play-by-play before he'll believe it."

I zip-tied Warling as he was coming to, but paid no attention to his bitching. I yanked him to his feet and cut my eyes to Stephanie.

"Why is it that every time I turn my back, you get a gun pulled on you?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. I'm a relatively nice person. So in theory ... not _everyone _I meet should want to shoot me."

"You ain't nice," Warling interrupted. "You just barged into my place, ordered me around, and then hit me."

"Yeah, well ... you skipped your court date, which means Ranger and I are duty-bound to pick you up and personally escort you back to jail. Pretty accommodating of us, don't you think? Giving you a free lift and all. And you didn't politely answer me when I called out a greeting through your magically-opened door. Plus when you _saw us_ or heard _me_, you didn't immediately stick your wrists out for me to cuff with an apology for shirking your court-ordered responsibility. Let's not forget that you just put a gun against my head. You're lucky I'm not a hell of a lot meaner. I could've let Ranger shoot you for threatening me, but I'm such a good person ... I clobbered you myself. I've seen him in action, and you really should be thanking me right now for sparing you some permanent pain, not whining about my rudeness."

"That's the caring and considerate Stephanie I know and love," I told her.

"Yep, that's me ... the human Care Bear."

Even if I'd wanted to, I couldn't have stopped the grin I gave her. She's the only one who wields that kind of power over my body. It automatically reacts to her despite my trying to keep it fully under my own control.

"Come on, Cheer Bear. Let's ditch the third wheel at the TPD, and then I'll take you for a 'Good Job' frozen hot chocolate in celebration of a job mostly-well done."

When she didn't attempt to get me to promise to buy her a doughnut too, I paused and jerked the asshole to a stop before opening the door so I could glance back at her. Her eyebrows were raised in question.

"When Julie was young," I explained, "she enjoyed watching the cartoon when it was being replayed on a retro channel. I made it a point to educate myself on anything she liked so our visits wouldn't completely traumatize her."

"You say that like she didn't actually love hanging out with her Badass Dad. You don't give her or yourself enough credit when it comes to your relationship. I enjoy every minute of the time I get with you even when you're lecturing me, which you're probably going to do over cold-cocoa, because I didn't check behind the front door immediately after entering an FTA's home. Or maybe you'll deviate from that one and ream me out for not letting you go ahead of me, instead of going the idiot route and taking advantage of your text-check and answer to take point on this job. I'm guessing his gun never would've made an appearance if I hadn't gotten cocky."

"You held your own and correctly assessed and de-escalated the situation. Just don't take a chance like this ever again or I'm pulling you off all apprehensions."

"Think about that one for a minute," she said, following me out of Warling's house and locking up behind us. "Do you _really _want me cooped up in the same building as you _allll _day, _everyday_?"

"Yes."

Now she paused. "Crap. I really do have to be more careful, don't I?"

"Yes again," I told her. "One of the perks of being the boss is I have the first and last say on everyone's standing in my organization, and every one of their schedules."

Warling unwisely snickered. "Hah-hah ... sounds like _you're _the one under arrest, not so much me."

She glared at him. "Does your head hurt?"

"A little."

"Keep talking and I'll make it feel so much worse ... you'll _beg _Ranger to blow it off."

My body once again acted without permission and I found myself leaning her way in order to drop a kiss to the top of her head.

"Love you, Babe."

"Yeah, yeah ... the feeling's mutual."

I know that tone and the resigned expression on her face. "You're going to ask me to be your mentor again, aren't you?" I said, not really needing to ask.

"Yup. I love the heck out of you, and I doubt that will ever change, but you'll come to your senses about loving _me _if I get stuck in a cubby all day."

"And if I provided you with an office, complete with a window, on the fifth-floor?"

"Same outcome … just with more room and natural light to highlight all the annoyed, bored, or restless, pacing I'll be doing."

"I'll expect you not to throw a punch at me when I wake you at five tomorrow morning so you can come to the gym with me."

"Wait ... what the heck does the _gym _have to do with safely clearing a building?" She asked.

"Do you want my help?"

"Now I'm not so sure. Do I?"

"You do. I can help you become one of the best if you stop fighting it."

She sighed as she got the back door so I could secure Warling in the Cayenne's backseat. "Fine. Five it is. For everyone's sake, I hope coffee first thing is part of your regimen."

Warling laughed at her again. "Hell, jail's looking better and better. I sure as shit don't wanna be you ... with the arrangement he just trapped you in."

Knowing my woman, I accurately predicted what would happen next. Warling 'accidentally' tripped over Steph's CAT boot and went flying headfirst into the back of the Porsche. His forehead bounced loudly off of the window behind the driver's seat.

"Hmmm ... who's laughing now? Not that I need to tell you _anything_," Steph said, sticking her upper body through the open car door to poke Bucky hard in his now exposed ribcage, "but I'm _loved _... not _trapped_. I've since learned that there's actually a huge difference between the two."


End file.
